No. Just no. My family and I ate here this evening. We ordered: Mushroom risotto, seafood linguine, gnudi, a side of polenta, calamari, and finally chicken strips.

Our son, who is a truffle and mushroom fanatic, ordered the mushroom risotto and a side of the truffle polenta. He took a few bites of the risotto and had to stop eating it. He was so hungry that he choked down half of the gross polenta.

Our daughter ordered the seafood linguine. It was so overwhelmingly pungent that she ate only a tiny portion of her food.

My husband and I split the gnudi and left the veggies to the side.

The calamari was very tasty and was perfectly paired with mama-lil’s pickled peppers. This was the best thing that we ate. It was served with a gorgeous marinara sauce. YUM. The only thing that could improve this appetizer is a slice of lemon and garlic aioli. But, it’s an Italian restaurant so the marinara is fitting. Honestly, if this was all that we ordered, I would have given the restaurant a 4.5 star review.

However, every single veggie and mushroom tasted exactly like plastic. They might have been freezer burned ???? It was very strange and utterly disappointing. The inconsistency of the vegetable quality and flavor ruined each dish that had veggies or mushrooms.

The two stars were earned by the calamari and the sophisticated gnudi. Each piece of gnudi was the epitome of a perfect morsel. However the dish was paired with squash that had the same plastic taste all the way through.

My husband and I tried eating the risotto (so that it wouldn’t be thrown away) and we simply couldn’t stomach it. The plastic flavor coupled with the instant smoke was gag-worthy.

Our son ended up eating chicken strips (imagine an eye roll here).

We paid 207 Canadian dollars for this meal. I cannot recommend Costello’s and warn people to stay away from this place.

Other than this meal, we are enjoying staying at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel. I’ve never felt more cared for…. And I’ve stayed at some of the finest hotels from around the world.